Railway-spike.



ROBERT o. DAY, or GAITEER, MARYLAND.

RAILWAY-SPIKE.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

rammed Aug. 1,1905.'

Application filed October 15, 1904. Serial No. 228,606.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT O. DAY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Gaither, in the county of Carroll and State of Maryland,have invented new and useful Improvements in Railway-Spikes, of whichthe following is .a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in railway-spikes; and the objectof the same is to provide a spike having means which facilitates thedriving thereof into a tie and its extraction therefrom when occasionrequires, as well as means which prevents it from accidentally workingout or becoming loosened.

Another object of the invention is to provide a construction andarrangement of parts which secures these advantages and in additionprovides an extended surface increasing the area of the head or drivingportion of the spike which receives the impact of the driving sledge orhammer.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists of thefeatures of construction, combination, and arrangement of .partshereinafter more fully described and claimed, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front perspective view ofa railway-spike embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a rear perspectiveview thereof. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the spike, and Fig. 4 is ahorizontal cross-section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

The body or shank 1 of the spike ispreferably of rectangular form incross-section and provided with a pointed `lower end 2 and adriving-head 3. The head 3 is provided with the usualforwardly-projectingrail-engaging lip or iiange 4, which is coextensivein width therewith and increases the driving or impact portion of thehead to enable the blows of the hammer or driving-tool to be appliedthereto with greater force and accuracy. In accordance with my inventionthe head 3 is further enlarged by providing it with laterally-projectingears or extensions 5, the under surfaces-of which form shoulders 6,adapted to serve as bearing portions, which may be engaged by the clawsof -an extracting-tool to enable the spike to be withdrawn from a tiewhen occasion requires. These ears project laterally beyond the sideedges of the lip 4 to form shoulders 42 on opposite sides Hush with thetop of the head, the front portion of 1 the spike being cut away, asshown at 4', on opposite sides of the lip to separate the ears therefrominorder that the ears may be independently subjected to blows from aSledge or hammer with a minimum transmission of the shock of impact tothe head proper and the lip. By this means the spike when improperlydriven or when canted from a true line by a glancing blow may be rightedor restored to erect position by a blow or blows upon one or the otherof the ears 5. `The shoulders 42 serve to loosen the spike when the sameis driven into the rail-tie, the loosening being accomplished byalternate blows with a suitable instrument first on one shoulder andthen upon the other. As shown, each ear 5 diminishes in width toward itsouter or free end, being provided with laterally-projecting wings 7 7,ex-

tending outwardly from the sides of the shank 1, adjacent to the frontside thereof. These wings are in the nature of fiat plates substantiallytriangular in form and constitute webs connecting the front portions ofthe extensions 5' with the sides of the flange 4, thus reinforcing thehead and providing an extended surface of such a character as to enablethe blows or impact from the hammer or other drivingtool to be bettersustained and transmitted more directly to the body or shank 1. Theouter edges of the triangular wings 7 converge downwardly from theextensions 5 of the sides of the shank 1, into which they merge orvanish at their lower ends, and by this arrangement the said outer edgesof the wings extend approximately at an Oblique angle to the shank andgradually cause `a diminishment of the metal of which the upper portionof the spike is made to lighten the same as well as diminish resistanceto its penetration into the tie. The front face of the inclined edge ofeach wing 7 is beveled, as shown at 8, to form an edge orcutting-surface which facilitates the driving of a spike into a tie.These beveled or inclined surfaces lie at an \angle to the body of thetie and to the wingsl shape of the wings 7 tend to prevent the spikefrom accidentally working loose or pulling out of the tie. The upperends of the wings are widest or expand laterally to a greater extentwhere they join the flange 4 and lateral eX- tensions 5 of the head, sothat they reinforce the said portions of the head to a maximum degree toprevent the same from breaking when sustaining the shock from indirector improperly delivered blows of a driving sledge or hammer.

`From the foregoing description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, the construction and mode of operation of theinvention will be understood without a further extended description.

Changes in the form, proportions,and minor details of construction maybe made within the scope of the invention without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is A spikecomprising a shank and a head, the said head consisting of a main orbody portion provided with a forwardly-projecting lip andlaterally-projecting ears, the ears having a slight outward and downwardcurvature and projecting at their forward edges beyond and being freefrom connection with the side edges of the lip, the lip itself beingeoextensive in width with the body portion o the head and of less widththan the combined widt-h of said body portion and ears, said lip beingcut away iiush with the top ot' the head on opposite sides to formshoulders and wings constructed of flat plates of substantiallytriangular form joining the head, shoulders of the lip and ears at theirupper ends, and having their side edges convergingdownward toward theshank with their terminal ends arranged in line with the side laeesolsaid shank, said wings being provided with beveled ontward edges,substantially as specilied.

1n testimony whereof IV aliix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ROBER'l O. DAY. lVitnesses:

WM. MnLvILLn, R. MoCnow.

